“Coaches say this is one of the toughest (tournaments) in the state, they call this a mini state because if you come here and do really good, and that’s my goal, then my goal to get to the (real) state tournament should be much easier,” Berlin’s Mitch Kramer said.

“It’s great because there is a lot of tough competition, really tough competition,” Ripon’s Zach Beck added. “You don’t find it at every competition so it helps you prepare for state.”

Like Kramer and Beck, many relate it to the state tournament because it has skilled wrestlers from every division – meaning wrestlers can see a lot of wrestlers in a higher division – and that a lot of the wrestlers here could potentially see the same opponents down the road at regionals, sectionals or even state.

Berlin's Zach Wilson wrestles Germantown's David Nilles in the 220 weight class of round two. Wrestlers compete in the Oshkosh On The Water wrestling tournament at the Kolf Sports Center on Tuesday, December 29, 2015 Jeannette Merten/For Oshkosh Nor

Lomira's Chase Parr (top) wrestles West De Pere's Evan Frisque in the 145 weight class of round two. Wrestlers compete in the Oshkosh On The Water wrestling tournament at the Kolf Sports Center on Tuesday, December 29, 2015 Jeannette Merten/For Oshkosh Nor

Oshkosh West's Edgar Heredia wrestles West Allis Nathan Hale's Oliver Arena in round two of the 145 weight class. Wrestlers compete in the Oshkosh On The Water wrestling tournament at the Kolf Sports Center on Tuesday, December 29, 2015 Jeannette Merten/For Oshkosh Nor

Oshkosh West's Aric Lippold is thrown by Menasha's Connor Quick in round two. Wrestlers compete in the Oshkosh On The Water wrestling tournament at the Kolf Sports Center on Tuesday, December 29, 2015 Jeannette Merten/For Oshkosh Nor

Oshkosh North's Kyle Schwartz wrestles Laconia's Alec Potter in the round three match. Wrestlers compete in the Oshkosh On The Water wrestling tournament at the Kolf Sports Center on Tuesday, December 29, 2015 Jeannette Merten/For Oshkosh Nor

“This is where a bunch of good wrestlers come and after I’m done wrestling here I’ll look back on the film and see what I can improve upon,” Kramer said. “(It allows me to see) guys in my conference, too, because one of my goals is to win conference. Also guys at regionals and sectionals.”

Not only does it allow wrestlers to see a lot of different competition, it is a good measuring stick for them because it allows them to see where they’re at in this point of the season.

“It’s really competitive, there are the best teams around the state here,” said Michels. “It’s one of the bigger tournaments so it’s good for completion. This gives us a good measuring point to see where were at and we get to go against tougher guys. It separates the men from the boys.”

“You go up against the best kids in all divisions and seeing what you’re up against,” Oshkosh West’s Reed Yoder added. “If you watch their matches you can see what they could do against you and then you can prepare for that match.”

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Oshkosh West's Reese Thompsom and Reed Yoder talk about what it means to compete at On The Water.
Alex Wolf/Oshkosh Northwestern Media

While preparing for the two-day tournament may be hard especially coming off the holiday weekend, Beck said that he prepared the same as if it was any other tournament.

“It’s like any other tournament, you just have to keep working hard and treat it like any other tournament,” Beck said. “I just go out and wrestle my match. Preparation is the same, just have to keep working hard.”

While Beck said he treats it like any other tournament, and said he doesn’t necessarily look forward to it each year, it’s one of the favorites for some of the other local wrestlers, simply because of how much competition there is.

“I think it’s pretty fun, it’s one of the bigger tournaments around,” Oshkosh North’s Logan McConnell said. “It’s nice to see where you rank against the best teams and individually. I look forward to this tournament every year, I’ve been wrestling for four years and I enjoy this one and its one of the best ones I’ve ever done.”

“It’s a lot of fun, you get to experience wrestlers that are amazing,” West’s Reese Thompson added. “It’s a great way to see where you are because you can see ranked kids from every division that you’ll be wrestling.”